Spinning Out of Control or All According to Plan?

Thinking about the past success of this Blackhawks team, thinking about what Joel Quenneville is doing at this very second and thinking about what's to come in Chicago in the near future.

Coaching changes usually boost a team's spirit and they go on a bit of a run. Looking no further than Edmonton's change bringing in Ken Hitchcock who's coached his way to a 4-2-1 record in the last 7 games.

Jeremy Colliton is mad and he's got a reason to be. This team is not picking up on these tweaks and despite Stan Bowman's comments on Spittin' Chiclets that out of the 11 games that Jeremy has coached the Hawks have had 10 strong showings (form an effort level).

I'm going to have to disagree there, Stanley. I would say there is some effort amongst some, but the Hawks have had more down games due to "lack of ice recognition" (as Eddie Olczyk has defined it as).

Removing Joel from the picture, as we can all agree, wasn't the going to save this team. Don't get me wrong, I like Jeremy Colliton, but this is all on Stan and this roster that he's put together. Also, the other major issues are the "this is a playoff team" narrative from Stan and John McDonough. Spoiler alert men: this isn't!

Stan Bowman's appearance on the above referenced Spittin' Chiclets (which is hilarious by the way) struck me as odd. Stan and his personality definitely does not fit this environment.

This, to me, was a very interesting PR move. Because let's be honest, Stan Bowman does not make moves on his own without it being very calculated; he is that way personal and the Chicago Blackhawks enforce a rigourous marketing process ever since John Mcdonough entered onto the scene.

Stan also had a lengthy sit down with Scott Powers of the Athletic. This also was interesting timing.

This team is looking to preserve the fanbase as much as possible but they know the reality; this consecutive "sellout" record at the UC is over and there are some tough times ahead.

To me and my marketing eye, it appears that the Hawks are looking to humanize Stan Bowman and are on a mission to put a positive spin on him and all the great he's done/doing. It's working for some, however, his public appearance will not change the fact that this team is not very good.

Which leads me to think that this was the plan all along. Do you think?

Stan says all of the right things like "there were no riffs between Joel and I" and "John McDonough is great and doesn't get involved in day-to-day" but I'm not fully believing that.

I like some things Stan has done. I hate some of the decisions he's made. And recently I remain confused about his construction of this roster and direction.

I have been watching very closely since Jeremy Colliton has taken over. It appears that there is some meddling with his decisions or possible "too many cooks in the kitchen".

How does Erik Gustafsson go from 27+ mins TOI a couple games ago to a healthy scratch last game? To my Colliton, based on ice time has identified Gustafsson as a top 3-4 defenceman (to which I will strongly disagree). So why the change of heart by sending an invitation to the press box? Doesn't make sense.

Well, Connor Murphy is back next week and should offer more difficult decisions on the backend.

The Hawks hit the road with a game tomorrow in Anaheim and one on Thursday vs. Vegas.

Will Colliton be able to run his own ship and turn this thing around or will there be more angry press conference.